Auxiliary step for railway-coaches.



B. F. ROBERTS.

AUXILIARY STEP FOR RAILWAY COACHES.

APFLIOATION FILED 1211.21; 1914.

1,106,972. Patented Aug. 11, 1914.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BERNARD F. ROBERTS, OF SABETHA, KANSAS.

AUXILIARY STEP FOR RAILWAY-COACHES.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented 11 1914 Application filed April 21, 1914. Serial No. 833,549.

Railway-Coaches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention rclates to railway rolling stock and more particularly to an auxiliary step for attachment to the approach step of a railway coach, for facilitating the descending or alighting from the steps by passengers.

The primary object of this invention is the provision of an auxiliary step which is pivotally suspended below the lowermost of the flight of steps which leads to the entrance of a railway coach, which step is held in an up wardly folded position and out of the way during the traveling, and it falls by its own weight to an operative position in alinement with the steps of the car when released.

With the foregoing and other objects in view this invention consists in such novel features of construction, combination andv arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters of reference designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which-:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation showing the auxiliary step in a suspended operative position. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the step of a railway coach showing the improved auxiliary step applied thereto, and Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a coach step showing the auxiliary step in a folded and inoperative position.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1 designates the approaching flight of steps, to a railway coach (not shown),which steps have the guide supports 2 and 3 and extend downwardly at an angle from the,

floor of the railway coach as is ordinary in the construction of steps of this nature. The braces 2 and 8 of the flight of steps 1 have rods 4 and 5 pivotally connected respectively to each of the braces,- at one of their terminal ends, and the other terminal ends of the bars 4 and 5 are pivotally connected to an auxiliary'step 6 near the lower end or platform of the step as is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawings. The auxiliary step 4 is shaped to conform to the shape of the step 1 and it is of greater width than the steps 1 having its ends 7 and 8 in overlapping engagement with the sides of the lowermost step of the flight of steps 1, so as to allow the free unobstructed swinging movement of the auxiliary step for positioning it in an upwardly folded position rearwardly of the flightof steps 1, where it will be out of the way and in a position for permitting of the clearance of the various obstructions along side the track over which the train'is traveling.

The bar 4, has pivotally connected thereto intermediate its ends as at 9, a catch bar 10. The catch bar 10 has formed upon its opposite terminal ends, catches or engaging hooks 11 and 12, and a handle 14 is formed upon the bar 10 and projects substantially at right angles to the catch bar, and has a handle 15 formed thereupon for the convenient manipulation of the catch bar. The arm 16 of the catch bar 10, which has the catching or engaging end 11 formed thereupon has a spiral spring 18 connected thereto, which spring is in turn connected to the bar 4 and automatically moves the arm 16 so that the engaging end 11 thereof will enif V gage the pin 19, which is carried by the side 2 of the flight of steps 1, for holdingthe foldable step firmly in a folded position.

During the travel of the train, the auxiliary step 6 is normally positioned as is shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, or folded behind and beneath the lower end of the flight of steps 1, and when the train stops and it is desired to position the auxiliary step for facilitating and rendering more convenient the ascending or descending of passengers upon the steps, the handle 14 is manipulated, for moving the catchll out of engagement with the pin 19, and theweight of the step will upon release of thecatch 11 from the pin 19, cause the step to swing downwardly upon the pivotal point of the bars 1 and 5 and position the step in alinement with the steps which form the flight 1 or as is clearly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, causing the cat ch12 tomove into engagement with ins 20, for supporting the step in a suspen ed position.-

for holding said swingable step rigidly in a suspended position in alinement with the flight of steps a supporting catch bar connected to said auxiliary step for holding it in folded or suspended posltion and means connected to said catch bar for automatically operating the same.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

BERNARD F. ROBERTS.

Witnesses ED S. KENNEDY, F. C. TOODBURY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

